7 Things You Should Know About the FCC's Historic Net Neutrality Ruling

What is net neutrality?

Net neutrality is the idea that internet service providers (companies like Verizon and Comcast, for instance) should be just that, and no more. They shouldn't be gatekeepers who judge of which kinds of content should get high speeds and which should get low ones, and they shouldn't take money from big companies who want to pay more for their websites to go faster.

What rules did the FCC actually pass?

No blocking, no throttling, and no paid prioritization. ISPs can't block access to content (as long as it's legal). They can't slow down internet traffic based on content, use, or services provided. And they can't make some content available at faster speeds than other content.

No blocking, no throttling, and no paid prioritization

Those against the legislation—most notably, FCC Commissioners Ajit Pai and Michael O'Rielly—say this is scary government regulation that will make the internet worse and more expensive for everyone because now it will be regulated. Well, this is regulation, but all it's doing is saying no one should have control over how content gets delivered.

What's the case in favor of throttling internet speeds and creating fast lanes?

Sometimes, a bunch of internet traffic comes from just one content provider. During peak times, Netflix streaming makes up almost a third of all internet traffic. That can clog up other traffic, since there's only so much broadband space to go around. So charging Netflix to not have its traffic slowed down is fair, the ISPs might say. If Netflix is using up more space than anyone else, it should have to pay more than anyone else.

Wait, didn't the FCC already deal with net neutrality a few years ago?

In 2010, the FCC passed the Open Internet Order, a precursor to today's net neutrality. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia overturned parts of the order in 2014, saying that the federal government doesn't have the authority to regulate ISPs.

But that's different now?

Today's 3-2 vote approving the new rules effectively reclassified the internet is a public utility and therefore subject to FCC oversight. Such a classification gives the FCC the kind of authority that a district court said it lacked in 2014, when it undid the original Open Internet Order.

The FCC says this new classification will be good not only for consumers but for entrepreneurs by "ensuring that new products and services…aren't blocked or throttled by internet service providers putting their own profits above the public interest."

Will this affect wireless providers too?

As a public utility, the internet has to be treated the same everywhere

Yes. As a public utility, the internet has to be treated the same everywhere, whether it's on phones or computers. Wireless providers are even more crunched by bandwidth limitations that regular ISPs, which would make it seem like they'd be even more upset about net neutrality than regular ISPs. But Sprint and T-Mobile have already said they're fine with the new rules, so maybe others will follow suit.

What changes will internet users notice?

Not many, at least in the short term. In theory, you could suddenly get less choppy Netflix streams. But you probably won't see that or any other major changes until the legal dust has settled. As the two dissenting FCC commissioners warned during Thursday's meeting, ISPs will almost certainly challenge the ruling in court, claiming the regulation is overstepping the FCC's authority.

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